“Framing Africa”

Ian’s previous post on the way people use the term “Africa” as if it is intrinsically meaningful when in fact it obscures the vast differences in language, culture, and history that range across an enormous continent, is supported by a wealth of media criticism over images of “Africa.”

This article makes the case that US coverage of “Africa” reveals more about American biases and preconceptions than it does about the regions the media is supposed to cover.

There are also numerous blogs, websites, and media hubs where people in various African countries are representing themselves. In addition there are some fantastic books about media images and the role they play in shaping our understanding of the places in the world we may never directly interact with.

This blog, curated by Sean Jacobs, faculty at the New School, engages directly with the generalization made by many, by ironically titling the blog “Africa is a Country” : http://http://africasacountry.com